On the job: What to expect from 'Working' musical in Stockbridge

Musical "Working" examines wage-earning in America

James Barry with the cast of "Working." (courtesy: Berkshire Theatre Group)

James Barry with the cast of "Working." (courtesy: Berkshire Theatre Group)

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James Barry with the cast of "Working." (courtesy: Berkshire Theatre Group)

James Barry with the cast of "Working." (courtesy: Berkshire Theatre Group)

On the job: What to expect from 'Working' musical in Stockbridge

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Walt Whitman's line "I hear America singing," opens the musical "Working," which starts a monthlong run on Thursday at the Unicorn Theatre in Stockbridge. The Americans depicted in the show certainly do sing, but they're not intoning about amber waves of grain or purple mountains' majesty. They're singing about the mundane reality of their jobs. And when you get down to it, that's what makes them Americans.

"'Working' is an American story, it's our relationship to work. Is there anything more unifying in America than work?" says director James Barry. "We get to know this panoply of Americans and hear about their functions. Whether their job is uplifting or depressing, something vital or just a steppingstone, it's an astonishing range of real people."

"Working" is based on the 1974 book by Studs Terkel, an acclaimed author and historian who died in 2008 at age 96. Terkel compiled verbatim interviews with more than 100 folks, including a waitress, a telephone operator and a fireman as well as members of what today would be called "the 1 percent." The interviews can get into the granular details of tasks but also encompass the emotional toils and triumphs that are part of earning a living. Terkel's subtitle sums it up: "People Talk About What They Do All Day and How They Feel About What They Do."

In the late '70s, just a few years after his success with "Godspell" and "Pippin," composer Stephen Schwartz led a team of songwriters who collaborated on a musical adaptation. The group included James Taylor and Mary Rodgers (daughter of Richard Rodgers) as well as Craig Carnelia and Micki Grant. After a premiere at the Goodman Theater in Chicago, the musical made its Broadway debut in 1978 with a cast that included a young Patti Lupone, who played an editor and a call girl. Alas, the piece was not a commercial success and played for only 12 previews and 24 performances.

The property has lived on thanks mostly to community and college productions and it's been revised a couple of times. An updated version seen off-Broadway in 2012 featured a number of new songs, including two from Lin-Manuel Miranda ("Hamilton") that were written specifically for the show. Late last month, "Working" had another short-lived Manhattan revival as part of the Encores series at City Center. The midtown venue, now celebrating its 75th anniversary, inserted into the script tributes to some of its employees, including the box office manager and members of the backstage crew.

The flow of "Working" is akin to the book. Through a succession of songs plus a few short monologues, you simply encounter one on-the-job American after another. But not everything is a solo, as the cast assembles into various ensembles for specific scenes.

The show's flexibility appealed to director Barry, whose past work for the Berkshire Theatre Group includes an acclaimed 2017 production of "Million Dollar Quartet."

"I'm using a cast of 10, though it's designed for six," says Barry. "I wanted some diversity and just more voices."

The director is also highlighting immigrant workers, including undocumented laborers. "I'm working with the design team to start the show in an immigration waiting room," he says. "In the beginning everyone is isolated and on their own. Then we explore our interconnectedness. In the end, we reach for spirit of being one nation indivisible."

Late last year Barry directed a production of "Working" at Wagner College on Staten Island. He says he's read Terkel's entire publication, a massive tome divided into nine "books." To assist the cast in their own research he's flagged every character who made the leap from the book to the show.

"I'm trying to give equal respect to each individual in the show," he says. "They are all trying to fit into this nation state of America and it's not a level playing field. Some people struggle, some have things handed to them, and others fall through the cracks."

Barry says that the latest version of the show reflects the employment landscape of the new millennium. That's particularly evident in the two new songs by Miranda. One is about a teenager delivering fast food. The other depicts a home caregiver who is here illegally. Her job is to be a surrogate family to the infirm, while back in her home country she has an ailing family member she can't visit without facing deportation.

"These people are searching for meaning in their lives through the framework of their vocation," says Barry. "They want to feel that they're respected."

Joseph Dalton is a freelance writer based in Troy.

More Information

If you go

Berkshire Theatre Group's production of "Working"

When: Opens 7 p.m. Thursday, July 18, and continues for 44 more performances through Aug. 24.